A laundry treating apparatus may be categorized into a washing-only apparatus only having a washing function, a drying-only apparatus only having a drying function and a laundry washing/drying apparatus having both of the washing and drying functions. Each of the washing-only apparatus and the laundry washing/drying apparatus may include a tub provided in a cabinet and a drum rotatably provided in the tub, and the drying-only apparatus may include a drum rotatably provided in a cabinet.
In a conventional laundry treating apparatus, a laundry opening for loading of the laundry is formed at the front of a body of the laundry treating apparatus, and a door may be installed to open and close the laundry opening. Also, the door may open and close the laundry opening while rotating along a horizontal direction (that is, left and right direction) or vertical direction (that is, up and down direction) when facing the front of the laundry treating apparatus.
A structure of a door that may open and close a laundry opening of a laundry treating apparatus by rotating along a horizontal direction and vertical direction in accordance with a selection of a user is already known. In such an open-close structure of the door, if a user sets a rotational shaft of the door to a horizontal rotational shaft by pressing an actuator provided in a recess at an upper end of the door, the laundry opening may be opened and closed by rotation of the door in a vertical direction.
According to the conventional laundry treating apparatus, as shown for example in Korean Patent Application No. 2011-0139295, a pressing point of the actuator pressed by the user is arranged to be lower than a pivot shaft of the actuator. In more detail, in the conventional laundry treating apparatus, the pressing point of the actuator is arranged near the bottom of the recess provided at the upper end of the door, and the pivot shaft of the actuator is spaced apart from the bottom of the recess to be farther than the pressing point.
Accordingly, the user should use an end knuckle (that is, first knuckle) or fingertip to press the pressing point of the actuator. In this case, a force for pressing the pressing point of the actuator should be focused on the end knuckle or fingertip, and there may be a risk that nails may be broken in case of a woman user.
Also, in the conventional treating apparatus, a direction for pressing the pressing point of the actuator is not the same as a direction for pulling the door. Accordingly, in order to open the door by rotating the door along a vertical direction, the user should pull the door toward his/her body after pressing the pressing point of the actuator. In other words, a problem occurs in that the user should apply a force to the door in two directions (that is, direction for pressing the pressing point of the actuator and direction for pulling the door toward the body of the user) to rotate the door along a vertical direction.